2010 World Series, in Tweets

So that's it. The World Series is over, and it's taking baseball with it. The Giants are world champs, and while I was rooting for the Rangers, I can handle this result. I could tell you my thoughts on the matter, but I think it's more interesting to get the reactions of others, so here are some of the tweets that made the round last evening:
















As always, if you are the author of any of these tweets, and would like yours removed, contact me and I will be happy to oblige.

Rangers in six

The World Series will finally get underway this Wednesday, and since my original prediction is no longer possible (Phillies in six), it’s time to reevaluate. Since all the major sports outlets were hoping for a big market, Philadelphia-New York World Series, there hasn’t been too much conjecture on the possibility of a San Francisco-Texas Fall Classic, and now that possibility has become the reality.

MLB and Fox (who will host the Series) expect a smaller audience for this matchup than they’ve had the past few years, but there’s a few good reasons to tune in even if your team isn’t involved. The Giants have not won a World Series since they departed from New York after the 1957 season. They have, however, won four Pennants in San Francisco (1962, 1989, 2002, 2010), but have yet to seal the deal with a Championship. The Texas Rangers, on the other hand, had never won an AL title until they defeated the Yankees last Friday, and prior to 2010, had won exactly one postseason game in their history. The Rangers are attempting to win their first World Series for new team owner Nolan Ryan (yes, the Nolan Ryan).

On the field the teams are pretty evenly matched. Both the Rangers and the Giants are anchored by a fantastic pitching staff: strong starters, quality bullpens, and dynamic closers. The Giants boast a 3.36 ERA, while the Rangers did about half a run worse at 3.93. This disparity could be almost completely stripped away when you consider that the Giants had the luxury of pitching to pitchers in the nine spot all season while the Rangers had to deal with designated hitters. Star power abounds in both rotations, with names like Cliff Lee, Tim Lincecum, and Matt Cain, while closers Neftali Feliz and Brian Wilson have developed cult followings in Texas and San Francisco, respectively.

On the offensive side, the Rangers had the best team batting average in the majors, batting .276 for the season, while the Giants hit .257. Rangers team OPS was a robust .757, while the came in just behind at .729. Each team has their fair share of big name sluggers, though Texas has the edge in star power with names like Josh Hamilton, Ian Kinsler, and Vladimir Guerrero. The Giants, for their part, have Aubrey Huff, Pablo “Kung Fu Panda” Sandoval, and ROY candidate Buster Posey.

Game One looks to be an exciting one, as Lee will face Lincecum in a Battle of the Aces. It should be a close one, but I’m taking Lee as the winner, mostly because he will be better rested after Lincecum had to pitch in relief in NLCS Game 6. Lee is 3-0 with a 0.75 ERA this postseason (and 2-0, 0.90 this season with 6+ days of rest), while Lincecum is 2-1, 1.93.

I'll do more head-to-head analysis as the Series gets going, but I’m going to go on record right now and pick the Rangers in six games, home field advantage or none.

[This post also appeared in the Trinity Tripod]

A Tale of Two Pennants (in Tweets)

It's no secret that I love Twitter. I've been pretty delinquent actually tweeting this season since (A) my summer residencde lacked internet access, and (B) my life has been a busy mess now that I'm back at school. However, I do still check on a regualr basis, and collect screengrabs of my favorite comments. And so, without further ado, here are some of the best tweets of the LCS:

Interestingly enough, both series ended with opposing hitters looking at strike three.



Red Sox Nation will remember his feeling well... I don't think any of us could believe out luck six years ago.


See above.

Too much awesome. Nolan Ryan is a bamf, and I hope he's willing to pay Cliff to stick around.

True to form, Craig Sager wore some truly ridiculous and retina-burning ensembles this postseason. Here's hoping the Rangers and/or Giants can douse some more of those awful suits in champagne.

Preach.

Because of Josh Hamiliton's long-documented struggle with alcoholism, the Rangers doused him in ginger ale instead of champagne. As far as I can ascertain, there was no powdered sugar around, despite Manager Ron Washington's confession of cocaine use early in the season.

TRUTH.

Merry bunch of misfits FTW.

As much as I hate Girardi, that ad was hilarious. So was the intentional walk followed by the three-run homer, but for different reasons.


Texas used to be a real country. True story.


Ummm... I totally plan on watching this series. And I'm thrilled with the matchup, despite the fact that the major networks and MLB are going to be crying over the small-market World Series.

[If you are the author of any of these tweets and desire their removal, please let me know and I will take them down.]

Congrats, Rangers!

I have to be honest: I was downright gleeful when A*Rod made the final out last night, partially because I was correct yet again with the predictions I made way back on October 5, before the playoffs had even begun. (Now the Phillies just need to take Games 6 and 7, and I'll be batting 1.000.)

I know a lot of you won't believe me because of my well-documented Yankees-hatred, but I truly wanted the Rangers to win because they deserved to win. They'd clearly been the superior team throughout the series, and they're players and personnel are SO MUCH EASIER TO ROOT FOR.

I'll be watching with interest to see how the Phillies/Giants series plays out, and be back soon with a World Series preview.